report
Maui's Deadly Firestorm
PBS FRONTLINE
PBS, December 2024
Investigative documentary examining the causes of the 2023 wildfire and systemic failures in emergency response
PBS FRONTLINE’s “Maui’s Deadly Firestorm” provides primary documentation of the August 8, 2023 fire timeline, infrastructure failures, evacuation collapse, and fatality documentation. The documentary documents the single-source water distribution network failure and lack of backup capacity, the dead-end streets that functioned as trap points during evacuation, upland routes including Lahaina Luna Road as viable escape paths, the lack of nearby emergency medical capacity and transport delays for injured residents, housing affordability and commuting patterns before the fire, and community response through organizations like Lahaina Strong and Ka Ko’o Maui.